In the face of flagging test scores, Anderson Community Schools staffers hope giveaways at a pair of basketball games next week will bring renewed attention to literacy efforts.
ACS, in partnership with the Anderson Federation of Teachers and the American Federation of Teachers, has joined a multiyear literacy initiative with a goal of giving away at least 1 million books to students across the country.
Dubbed “Reading Opens The World,” the campaign kicked off in December with a stated objective of “supporting students, educators and families and fostering an ongoing love of reading,” according to a news release from the national teachers federation.
“If you’re reading at or above grade level, it’s proven that you’ll be successful in all other academic areas,” said Randy Harrison, president of AFT Local 519. “If you’re successful in all other academic areas, whether you pursue a vocational degree or go into a college degree, college path of study, everybody will benefit.”
At Tuesday’s girls basketball game against Warren Central, then Friday when the boys team hosts McCutcheon, volunteers have a goal of handing out about 7,000 books to students at all grade levels. Students will be able to choose between three and five books to take home, Harrison said, and teachers will be allotted between 25 and 30 books to add to their individual classroom supplies.
Books will be organized by grade level. Works from a diverse group of authors will be included.
“Understanding the national AFT’s commitment to diversity, we fully expected and appreciated them providing books from a wide range of authors and reading levels,” ACS Superintendent Dr. Joe Cronk said. “This will ensure that the books we distribute to students and staff through this program will help to appeal to a wide range of interests.”
The book giveaway comes as ACS and other districts continue to navigate a learning landscape that has seen a variety of data related to reading scores drop significantly in the wake of the pandemic. ACS’s literacy level among third-grade students, for example, was at 64.5% in 2021, down from 84% two years earlier, according to the Indiana Department of Education.
On Thursday, a science classroom at Anderson High School doubled as a staging area where student and staff volunteers sorted through part of the school’s allotment of books, organizing them by reading level, author and title. The books, they said, will hopefully whet appetites for knowledge among the families who take advantage of the giveaway.
“I’m not saying a book has all the answers, but when you know more, you can solve more problems, be a problem solver and understand different things that go on,” senior Makhile McWilliams said as she organized books into small stacks that would be boxed up.
“That’s something that kids need right now.”
The decision to tie the event to the high school basketball games was sensible, Harrison said, because the district’s boys and girls elementary basketball programs are being recognized at halftime of each contest.
“It’s just a great community event to support our great student-athletes, our two great basketball programs,” Harrison said. “At the same time, we’ll get to enhance and supplement what we know is important: getting kids at grade level or above in reading.”
In the face of flagging test scores, Anderson Community Schools staffers hope giveaways at a pair of basketball games next week will bring renewed attention to literacy efforts.
ACS, in partnership with the Anderson Federation of Teachers and the American Federation of Teachers, has joined a multiyear literacy initiative with a goal of giving away at least 1 million books to students across the country.
Dubbed “Reading Opens The World,” the campaign kicked off in December with a stated objective of “supporting students, educators and families and fostering an ongoing love of reading,” according to a news release from the national teachers federation.
“If you’re reading at or above grade level, it’s proven that you’ll be successful in all other academic areas,” said Randy Harrison, president of AFT Local 519. “If you’re successful in all other academic areas, whether you pursue a vocational degree or go into a college degree, college path of study, everybody will benefit.”
At Tuesday’s girls basketball game against Warren Central, then Friday when the boys team hosts McCutcheon, volunteers have a goal of handing out about 7,000 books to students at all grade levels. Students will be able to choose between three and five books to take home, Harrison said, and teachers will be allotted between 25 and 30 books to add to their individual classroom supplies.
Books will be organized by grade level. Works from a diverse group of authors will be included.
“Understanding the national AFT’s commitment to diversity, we fully expected and appreciated them providing books from a wide range of authors and reading levels,” ACS Superintendent Dr. Joe Cronk said. “This will ensure that the books we distribute to students and staff through this program will help to appeal to a wide range of interests.”
The book giveaway comes as ACS and other districts continue to navigate a learning landscape that has seen a variety of data related to reading scores drop significantly in the wake of the pandemic. ACS’s literacy level among third-grade students, for example, was at 64.5% in 2021, down from 84% two years earlier, according to the Indiana Department of Education.
On Thursday, a science classroom at Anderson High School doubled as a staging area where student and staff volunteers sorted through part of the school’s allotment of books, organizing them by reading level, author and title. The books, they said, will hopefully whet appetites for knowledge among the families who take advantage of the giveaway.
“I’m not saying a book has all the answers, but when you know more, you can solve more problems, be a problem solver and understand different things that go on,” senior Makhile McWilliams said as she organized books into small stacks that would be boxed up.
“That’s something that kids need right now.”
The decision to tie the event to the high school basketball games was sensible, Harrison said, because the district’s boys and girls elementary basketball programs are being recognized at halftime of each contest.
“It’s just a great community event to support our great student-athletes, our two great basketball programs,” Harrison said. “At the same time, we’ll get to enhance and supplement what we know is important: getting kids at grade level or above in reading.”
This article appeared in The Herald Bulletin.